What started last year as a very promising junior season for Josh Pinkard, ended with a torn ACL, a redshirt year and a true freshman making All-American at his former position.

With his knee surgically repaired, Pinkard, now one of the many leaders for the University of Southern California defense, has been training to regain the speed and agility that made him arguably the team's most valuable defender last year.

"It's like 95%," Pinkard said about his knee. "But I've still got this brace on, other than that everything's real good.

"I've been working on it for two or three months now. I've just been doing speed work, the four-cone drill, running forties and timing myself. My speed and my hips are right where they used to be."